Instructions

ZOOM IN by clicking on the page. A slider will appear, allowing you to adjust your zoom level. Return to the original size by clicking on the page again.

MOVE the page around when zoomed in by dragging it.

ADJUST the zoom using the slider on the top right.

ZOOM OUT by clicking on the zoomed-in page.

SEARCH by entering text in the search field and click on "In This Issue" or "All Issues" to search the current issue or the archive of back issues
respectively.
.

PRINT by clicking on thumbnails to select pages, and then press the
print button.

SHARE this publication and page.

ROTATE PAGE allows you to turn pages 90 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise.Click on the page to return to the original orientation. To zoom in on a rotated page, return the page to its original orientation, zoom in, and
then rotate it again.

CONTENTS displays a table of sections with thumbnails and descriptions.

ALL PAGES displays thumbnails of every page in the issue. Click on
a page to jump.

news June 20 - 26, 2008 www.independentweekly.com.au 2 The Independent Weekly Publisher General Manager: Nigel Standish : Bill Nicholas, bnicholas@independentweekly.com.au : Ann Oliver : Philip White : Tom Richardson and Don Riddell : Stephen Gray : Liz Smelt : Karen Lowndes : India Wallace, Audra Edginton, Nina Bidgood, advertising@independentweekly.com.au : Peter Jarrett, Alison Moylan, circulation@independentweekly.com.au Bre Hill The Independent Weekly is a South Australian owned and operated newspaper, taking an independent view of local news, issues, business, sport and culture for all South Australians. www.independentweekly.com.au INDEX HOME DELIVERY CALL 8224 1600 news 2-6 hear'say 7 frankly 8 letters & opinions 11-13 spectrum 14 business 15 resources 18 happenings 19 punter 20 shares 21 media & marketing 22 professions 23 eat 24 thirst 25 arts & reviews 26-28 TV 29 galleries 30-31 sport 32-36 the week at a glance Health system in crisis Health has been in the headlines all week, with anaesthetists, surgeons and junior doctors joining the growing number of medicos threatening to resign unless they get better pay and conditions. Country doctors are also up in arms over plans to shut down inpatient services at 43 rural hospitals, protesting the move on the steps of parliament on Wednesday. Schools row continues Tuesday s teacher strike shut down state schools for the first time in 12 years. About 8000 teachers, parents and students marched on State Parliament and the Australian Education Union has vowed there will be more stoppages unless their demands are met. Teachers have asked for 21 per cent pay rise over three years, but the government has only offered 9.75 per cent. Clock ticking on Murray A leaked report has warned of an ecological disaster in parts of the lower Murray unless they receive water before October. Scientists found that parts of the river might never recover unless immediate action was taken, yet the Federal Government had not even planned to discuss the report until November. Follow the local news all day online www.independentweekly.com.au Premier Mike Rann lacks the authority to sack Attorney-General Michael Atkinson for calling a senior magis- trate s actions daft and delusional, say Labor insiders. Adelaide s legal community is infuriated and dismayed by Mr Atkinson s attack on SA deputy chief magistrate Andrew Cannon, who had said the state s prison overcrowding should be taken into account by magistrates and judges during sentencing. Party powerbrokers suggested yesterday that Mr Atkinson s strong links with the right-wing faction headed by former union boss and Senator- elect Don Farrell would ensure he kept the portfolio despite losing the confidence of the legal profession. Mr Rann was forced to defend the Attorney, saying on Wednesday that he was doing a great job and would not be shifted in the pending Cabinet reshuffle. But sources close to Cabinet say some very senior ministers are enraged by Mr Atkinson s behaviour. Dr Cannon, one of the state s most respected jurists, has retained an equally respected QC, Bar Association president Dick Whitington, and Minter Ellison partner Andrew Short to advise him on possibly suing the Attorney-General for defamation. An un-named magistrate is quoted in The Australian saying Dr Cannon would be "crazy if hedoesnotseea solicitor about defama- tion. I would, without blinking". Adelaide solicitors, barristers, magistrates and judges are aghast that the state s principal law officer should describe Dr Cannon s actions "daft" and "delusional". SA Law Society president Grant Feary called Mr Atkinson s language immoderate. The Judicial Conference of Australia also rallied to Dr Cannon s defence. Backing Mr Atkinson, Mr Rann himself then attacked the judiciary. The Premier said that by considering the problem of prison overcrowding, the legal profession was "out of step with public opinion". Australian Council for Civil Liberties president Terry O Gorman responded: "The one out of step is not the magistrate but the Attorney-General with his bizarre remarks". Legal activist Greg Barns said that if SA mistreats prisoners through overcrowding and inhumane treat- ment, prisoners sue the state for breach of duty of care. "If prison conditions are so intolerable that they are adversely impacting in a real way on prisoners getting access to their lawyers for the purpose of preparing their case, the right to a fair trial is being breached," Mr Barns said. Mr Atkinson this week attacked The Australian s coverage of the Cannon affair; he has refused to speak with The Advertiser s legal affairs editor since December 2006, is at war with the Adelaide producer of Channel Seven s Today Tonight, and has been known to impugn The Independent Weekly. The Attorney- General s media secretary Jayne Stinson said it would be a personal judgment to suggest that a dispute with journalists from four separate news organisations could indicate a problem stem- ming from Mr Atkinson, rather than from all those news reporters. Several wind farms proposed for SA may be in doubt following a perhaps terminal financial crisis at one merchant bank and the profit haemorrhaging at another. The Sydney-based Allco Finance Group, which is behind the proposed Worlds End wind farm near Burra in the state s mid-north, has around $900 million of long-term debt which threatens to bring down the company. And a second company, Babcock and Brown, is in free-fall. The value of its stock fell by around one-third in a single day last Friday. The company may be forced to sell its global infrastructure assets, including its wind develop- ment interests, to pay off its massive debts. After Macquarie Bank, Babcock and Brown is Australia s second- largest investment bank. Babcock and Brown and National Power are behind Lake Bonney wind farm, one of Australia s largest, as well as proposals or feasibilities for others on the Eyre Peninsula, Lake George and Mt Benson. Lake Bonney was the first of the wind farms in the south-east, where over 500MW of wind farm development is proposed. The two-stage venture is separate from the Canunda wind farm, previously called Lake Bonney Central, which is an International Power development opened by Premier Mike Rann in 2005. The farms are near Tantanoola, south of Millicent. Industry observers believe Babcock may replace several chairmen; Phil Green could go from the chairmanship of B&B Infrastructure and Warren Murphy depart B&B Power. Allco Wind Energy develops, builds and manages wind farms, and is also involved in their financial structuring. Its proposed Burra wind farm has a claimed potential capacity of 180MW. But Allco s share price collapsed from $13 last February to little more than 20c this week. The company is in the process of selling its US wind farm assets -- the Californian scheme is one of the largest in the world -- for $346 million. Now that the wolf is at the door, the two finance houses backing SA wind farms might be wondering whether they re built of straw and sticks. Yesterday the news for Babcock was slightly better. Its shares rebounded with the news that European interests are circling to buy its $3 billion world-wide wind businesses. This means Babcock s South Australian wind farms, now controlled by an Australian parent, could move to overseas ownership. Meanwhile, Myponga resident Barry Webb is officially seeking changes to development approvals for the new Myponga/Sellicks Hill wind farm. Mr Webb says that since the farm was approved in 2003, other countries and Australian states have toughened their standards, and SA should do the same. Mr Webb wants a buffer distance of one to two kilometres for turbines of 2MW and greater capacity from housing. Currently turbines are located 700m from a family home at Myponga. Shadow flicker must not exceed 30 hours per annum at any residence, television and radio interference be mitigated, and noise measures imposed, he told the Development Assessment Commission. Lawyers fury at Attorney-General An ill wind blows on energy Government of South Australia Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges Natural Resources Management Board NRM Take a closer look at what you are really spraying. As winter weeds emerge around the house, drive-way and pathways, there's a temptation to grab a weed killer and start spraying. Trouble is, some paver sprays contain Simazine, a chemical which poisons more than just weeds, it destroys opportunities to save water. Simazine is long lasting, so when it rains it gets washed down the drain polluting our stormwater. The Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges Natural Resources Management (NRM) Board and others, invest in schemes to capture stormwater for use when it is needed most, in summer. But to do this, the stormwater must be pollution free. You can help by avoiding using chemicals around your home and garden. Dig up weeds by hand. If you must use a paver spray, choose one that doesn't contain Simazine. For more information take a closer look at our website for a list of products containing this poison. www.amlrnrm.sa.gov.au